In a lopsided 50-over Under-19 Asia Cup final in Dubai on Sunday, India lost to Pakistan by a staggering 191 runs after faltering against the big-hitting Sameer Minhas and the extra speed of pacers. As is usually customary, the players of the two teams did not exchange formal greetings after Pakistan won their second U19 Asia Cup.
After riding on Minhas’ 172 (113b, 17×4, 9×6) to register a massive 347/8, Pakistan required a valiant chase to win the competition for the ninth time. However, as India collapsed for 156 in 26.2 overs, the tall Pakistan pace troika—Ali Reza (4/42), Mohammad Sayyam (2/38), and Abdul Subhan (2/29)—hurried their top-order with steady hard-lengths.
Despite Ayush Mhatre’s early dismissal, India’s chase got off to an explosive start. In the opening over, Vaibhav Suryavanshi took 21 runs by hitting Raza for two sixes and a four. As India got off to a fast start at 10 runs per over, Aaron George also got off to a great start, stroking Sayyam for three consecutive fours in the fourth over.
However, the final ball of the fourth over altered the direction of the match. Sayyam jostled George into a pull, and all he could do was fly the short-pitched ball to Mohammad Shayan inside the circle. Suryavanshi’s dismissal on the opening ball of the fifth over dealt India a severe blow.
The left-hander attempted a full-blooded pick-up shot off Raza, but the good-length ball with extra bounce nicked the edge of the opener’s bat and found its way into stumper Zahoor Hamza’s palms.
After a brief exchange of words and a frenzied celebration between Raza and the Pakistani fielders, Suryavanshi went out dejectedly. In just two balls, India fell from 49 for 1 to 49 for three, and that was only the start.
As Pakistani pacers turned the flat ICC Academy pitch into the Road of Bones, Vedant Trivedi and Kanishk Chouhan also succumbed to jeers. Abhigyan Kundu was India’s last hope, and a drop on 12 off Subhan suggested that things might turn around.
However, two balls after his reprieve, Kundu’s upper cut found Niqab Shafiq at third man, crushing all such aspirations.
Earlier, Pakistan’s opener Sameer Minhas once again showed off his exceptional talent with a stunning century, his second in the competition, as Pakistan made a lofty 347/8.
One of his team’s best players in the competition, Minhas shot to 172 off 113 deliveries as he carried the hopes of his team, which lost the group encounter to the bitter rivals by 90 runs at the same venue.
Pakistan did not allow India, who opted to bowl, to settle down as they entered the final fresh off a convincing eight-wicket semifinal victory over last edition champions Bangladesh.
Minhas, the younger brother of Pakistan T20 star Arafat Minhas, who had been instrumental in Friday’s semifinal with an undefeated half-century, targeted all bowlers but was particularly severe on new-ball bowlers Kishan Singh and Deepesh Devendran.
Minhas reached his century off 71 balls with a four off Devendran in the 29th over, capping an innings that featured 17 boundaries and nine sixes.
After hitting an undefeated 177 against Malaysia in the first group match, this was Minhas’ second century in the campaign. The 19-year-old was destined for a double century and to enter the elite 200-plus club alongside players like South Africa’s Jorich Van Schalkwyk and India’s Abhigyan Kundu.
However, he was caught at mid-on after being duped by Devendran’s slower delivery (3/83), as the India pacer relished his first wicket of the game following the brilliant start. Class was evident in Minhas’ stunning six in the 28th over, when he used his feet to launch an Ayush Mhatre delivery high in the air to deep mid-wicket.
After Hamza Zahoor (18) left early after taking the most straightforward catch at mid-off, falling victim to a playful off-stump line, it was easy sailing for Pakistan.
Zahoor’s dismissal brought Usman Khan (35) to the crease, and alongside Minhas he took the total to 123, the pair adding a crucial 92-run stand. Left-hander Ahmed Hussain, who has been in rich form throughout the tournament with a century and a half-century to his name, chipped in with a fluent 56 before left-arm spinner Khilan Patel (2/44) lured the middle-order batter into a sweep, resulting in a catch at mid-wicket.
His 137-run partnership with Minhas laid the platform for Pakistan to push towards a formidable total. India, the most successful side in the tournament’s history, have won the title a record eight times since its inception in 1989, including a shared crown with Pakistan in 2012 after the final ended in a tie. Pakistan, by contrast, had lifted the trophy only once before, sharing the title with their arch-rivals in Malaysia.
